The Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation joins the Global #GivingTuesday Movement and pledges to raise $75,000 to provide financial, emotional a practical support to local families tackling childhood cancer.

Jacksonville, FL November 4, 2015 – The Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation has joined #GivingTuesday, a global day of giving designed to harness the collective power of individuals, communities and organizations to encourage philanthropy and to celebrate generosity worldwide. The Jay Fund will participate in the global initiative with a Radiothon on 1010xl, a local ESPN affiliate, with a goal of raising $75,000.

Occurring this year on December 1, #GivingTuesday is held annually on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving (in the U.S.) and the widely recognized shopping events Black Friday and Cyber Monday to kick-off the holiday giving season and inspire people to collaborate in improving their local communities and to give back in impactful ways to the charities and causes they support.

Because the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund specifically supports Jacksonville Area families, supporters can give back and know their generosity will have a local impact. For the last five years the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Radiothon has been held around the holiday season and this year it made sense to align our efforts with #GivingTuesday. Last year the Radiothon raised almost $73,000 for local families, and this year we are setting the bar at $75,000.

“Encouraging philanthropy and celebrating generosity benefits our entire community. It’s not just about raising money for local families tackling childhood cancer, it’s about cultivating an environment where generosity is celebrated. Jacksonville is a generous area, with people giving an average of 3.8% of their income compared to the national average of 3%. We want to continue developing this mindset and make a point to “thank you” to such generous supporters,” says Keli Coughlin Executive Director of the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund.

#GivingTuesday was conceptualized by 92Y − a cultural center in New York City that, since 1874, has been bringing people together around its core values of community service and giving back. #GivingTuesday was created as a new way of linking individuals and causes to strengthen communities and encourage giving. In 2014, the third year of the movement, #GivingTuesday brought together 30,000 partners in 68 countries and registered 32.7 million impressions on Twitter, with its eponymous hashtag mentioned 698,600 times. Since 2012, online giving on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving has increased more than four-fold, based on findings by Blackbaud and the Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, produced in partnership with the Case Foundation.

Those who are interested in joining the Tom Coughlin Jay Fund’s #GivingTuesday initiative can like us on Facebook, follow us on #twitter, or visit tcjayfund.org.

ABOUT #GIVINGTUESDAY

#GivingTuesday was conceptualized by 92Y − a cultural center in New York City that, since 1874, has been bringing people together around its core values of community service and giving back. #GivingTuesday was created as a new way of linking individuals and causes to strengthen communities and encourage giving. In 2014, the third year of the movement, #GivingTuesday brought together 30,000 partners in 68 countries and registered 32.7 million impressions on Twitter, with its eponymous hashtag mentioned 698,600 times. Since 2012, online giving on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving has increased more than four-fold, based on findings by Blackbaud and the Indiana University’s Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, produced in partnership with the Case Foundation.